These are an experiment with a 10X objective at the end of a tube. This time no crosses, so I must have gotten it straight. Still not great. I really don't have very fine control of the focus. And the light is terrible.

The first one has the whole insect overlayed. The second one is the same insect from yesterday with the crosses on it, but at 10X instead of 4X. The third one is just a pretty insect that I took a long time ago through the microscope and finally stacked it.

Here's the same creature, but through the stereo microscope's photo tube. It's about the same magnification, similar poor lighting. Which one is better?[/img]

The first one looks much better to my eye -- more detailed. I believe your insect is a green lacewing, and I think it's a good question what the structure of their eye really is. I would like to think that it consists of smooth spherical segments that fit pretty tightly together, with perhaps narrow flat strips between the segments. But in most pictures, each facet of the eye appears to be a more or less narrow peg-like structure with broad flats between the facets. That is what your picture shows, similar to what is seen for example in these other two posts:
http://www.photomacrography1.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4974http://www.photomacrography.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7791

I suspect that this appearance is a matter of how the light source looks when reflected from the mirror-like surface of each facet, but I'm not sure.

I cannot recall seeing a higher magnification shot that would resolve this question for sure. Perhaps someone else remembers?

Their eyes do look very different than bees, ants, hornets, etc. It's hard to tell what the surface would really be like if we could hold one in our hand.

The colors in Charlie's pictures are amazing. I really need to work on my lighting. The body on mine looked twisted like a churro. Unfortunately, I was trying to blow some pollen off the eye of another insect and cannot find the green lacewing now to get good pictures of its body. This new insect has red eyes and I'll be posting it soon. Unfortunately, I went through about a 20-picture session and realized that there was no memory card in the camera